The pilot project, involved 1500 to 10,000 patients who have volunteered for the electronic transfer of their personal health records which would be retrieved through Google's new service, without being open to the general public. Each health profile, including information like prescriptions, allergies and medical histories, would be protected by a password.

''We believe patients should be able to easily access and manage their own health information,'' Sydney Morning Herald quoted Google executive Marissa Mayer, overseeing the health project as saying.

''A patient who agrees to transfer medical records to an external health service could be making it easier for the government or other legal adversary to obtain the information,'' stated World Privacy Forum's executive director Pam Dixon.